Guard rail



Apr. 1Q, 11923.

A. 1H. lWESTON GUARD RAIL Filed June 501,711922 -2 sheets-sheet 1 @/f .IN

Bywmmmaw A TTORNE Y A, H. WESTON GUARD RAIL Fllezdl June 30,

1922 2 sheets-sheet 2 ATORNEY Patented Apr. 10, 1923.

UNTED ST ALONZO E. wEsToN, orv

'ras PMENT-0FF11CE- YoNKEn-s, NEW YORK, AssiGNon To AMERICAN CHAIN COMPANY, INC., A CORPORATIN'OF NEW YORK.

GUARD RAIL.

Application led .Tune 30, 1922. Serial No. 572,102.

To all to wm t may concern Be it known that I, ALoNZo II. IVEsToN, a citizen of 'the United States, residing at Yonkers, in the county ot lI/Yestchester, @tate or' vNew York, have invented cert-ain "new and useful Improvements in Guard Rails, oi which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a speciH Ii'cation. i.

@ne object ot the invention is to provide a one-piece guard rail, that is to say, a guard l provided with Ameans `for maintaining thel guard rail at a uniform distance tronithe traffic rail and forinsuring that in adjustment the guard rail will be spaced at anun- `Varying predetermined distance from the trailic rail. y l 7 Another object is vto provide a guard rail which is provided withmeans tor predetermining the distance at which it shall be 1ocated from the main rail, and which shall' also contain provision for taking up the ve-ar ordinarily incident to use. Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a `plan View of the guard rail shown in association with a traffic rail.

Figure 2 is an enlarged viewof a portion of the guard rail shown in association with a traffic rail.

Figure 3 ris a fragmentary view in eleva tion of the guard rail.

Figure 4 is a view in section on the line t-I of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a view in section on the line 5-.5 of Figure 2. i

Figure 6 is a view in. section on the line 6 6 vof FigureQ.-

The guard rail is shown in association with a traiiic T-rail of conventional forni consisting. of the tread 1, the web 2, the inner` 'flange Bland the outer `flange el.'

The guardrail rests upon end base plates 5 5 and also a number of intermediate base plates', which are preferably spacedin accordance ywith vthe spacing of the cross ties o'l" the road bed and which, if desired, may be integral with the guard rail and `be adapt` ed to extend beneath the traiiic rail, so that the latter may rest thereoni For lightening y the guard rail` `it finay be made hollow `as shown in Figures l, 5 and Gand it may comprise the outer sidewall 7 and the inner side i wall 8, these side walls being erected on the bases 5 and 6 andlsupportingthe head 6a.

As observed in plan View the shape lof the,

guard. rail as shown in Figures 1 and 2 is such that thel ends diverge from thetralic Arail inwardlyr toward the middle' oi' the track, the space between the dive-rging 'portions and the traflic rail near the taken up by foot guards 9.

In orderto .make it possiblev to renew from' ends being time to time the wearing surface of the l guard rail, I prefer'tn provide a` wearing strip 10 retained against the head of the guard rail by the bolts 11 or any other convenient means. l Thek effector a side thrusto the wheels 0i' a passing trainagainstthe wearingl strip is such` that a strong shearing thrusttends to be set up in the base plates along `their lines of contact with the edge of the traffic rail. In order to prevent this shearingstress from becoming extensive, I provide lthe brackets 12 projecting'from the outer wall 7 of the guard rail and having a shoulder y13 which extends beneath the treadof the tratfic rail leaving a slight clearance between the shoulder and the traliic rail as shown in Figures 4c, 5 and 6, andshoulder 14 which extends toward .the upper ysurface of `the iange 3, also in like manner leaving a slighty the shoulder and the vtrafdownward pressure of the'tread 1 on the shoulder 13. In a vsimilar manner, any side thrust against the inner side of the traiiic. i

rail is opposed by the shoulder 14 after the clearance between that shoulder and the flange 3 has been taken up. Under ordinary circumstances, however, the shoulder' 14e functions'in this manner very infrequently and to a very limited extent.

The value of providing clearance between the shoulders 13 and 11iand the opposing portions of the traffic rail lies in the fact that there is thus provided a considerable change of adjustment to take carev of nonuniformity in proportions and dimensions of traffic rails. In order, however, to insure that there shall be a uniform distance under all circumstances between the guard rail and the traffic rail, I prefer to provide stop lugs l5-15, projecting from any suitable portion of the guard rail, for example, from the part 9, the-length of the lugs being such as to establish a minimum spacing of the guard rail with respect tothe traffic rail.

l The number of these lugs is not invariable,

but I find that .two of' them usually answer' the purpose satisfactorily. The presence of these lugs thus dispenses with any necessityl for estimating' the proper location of the guard rail with respect to the traffic rail, this dista-nce being uniformly and invariably fixed by the extent to which the lugs project; rEhe consequence is that. the guard rail may not only be initially placed at the Y proper distance, but it will maintain that distance under all circumstances, with the exception of suchv change as may arise from wear on the wearing strip l0 which is of little consequence, at any rate provided the wearing strip berenewed from time to time as required.

In order to make the structure adaptable for traffic rails of varying width of base fla-nge, I provide the base plates with apertures l'stepped as shown in Figures l and 2 in such manner as to permit the placing of rail spikes at a suitable range of varyinfr distances on the cross ties.

Ilaving thus described my invention, I

claim:

1. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail, means for causing' the traffic rail to oppose lateral .thrusts on the guard rail and a stop adapted to limitthe p-roximity of the said thrust opposing means to the traffic rail.

2. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail, a bracket projecting laterally from said guard rail and adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of a T traffic rail and a stop projecting from said guard rail and adapted to abut against said trafiic rail and adapted to limit the proximity of the said bracket to the trafiic rail.

3. In a guard rail structure a guardrail and a bracket projecting laterally therefrom, Said bracket being formed to present a shoulder toward the'underside of the tread of a traffic rail, said guard rail being also provided with a stop adapted to space the laziness guard rail and traffic rail at such distance as to leave slight clearance between said shoulder and said tread.

4. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail, a bracket projecting laterally from said guard rail and adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of a T trafc rail, two shoulders on said bracket, one adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of the traffic rail and the other adapted to extend toward the uppersurface of the flange of said traffic rail and a stop extending from said guard rail and adapted. to abut against said traffic rail and also adapted to establish a minimum spacing of said guard rail with respect to said traffic rail, said spacing being such that there is slight clearance betwen the said shoulders and said traiic rail.

5. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail,

means for causing the trafhc rail to oppose lateral thrusts on the guard rail, a stop for establishing a minimum spacing of the thrust opposing means with respect to the traffic rail and a detachable wearing strip on said guard rail.

6. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail, a bracket projecting laterally from said guard rail and adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of a "l" traffic rail, aI stop projecting from said guard rail and adapted to abut against said traffic rail and to prevent contact of said bracket with the traffic rail and a detachable wearing strip on said guard rail.

7. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail, a bracket projecting laterally therefrom, said bracket being so formed as to present a shoulder toward the under side of the tread of' the traffic rail, said guard rail being also provided with a stop adapted to establish a minimum spacing between said shoulder and said traiiic rail, said spacing being such as to leave slight clearance between said shoulder and said tread `and a detachable wearing strip on said guard rail.

8. In a guard rail structure, a guard rail, a bracket projecting laterally from said guard rail and adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of a T traffic rail, two shoulders on said bracket, one adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of a trafhc rail and the other adapted to extend toward the upper surface of the flange plates, the said base plates being adapted to lie on cross` ties and to extend beneath and support a traffic rail, means for causing the tralic rail to oppose lateral thrusts 0n the guard rail and a stop for establishing minimum spacing between the thrust opposing means and the traflic rail. i

l0. In a guard rail Structure, a plurality of base plates, a guard rail erected on said base plates, said base plates being adapted to extend beneath and support a tratlic rail, brackets laterally projecting from said guard rail, said brackets having shoulders adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of the traffic rail and also toward the upper surface of the flange of the said traffic rail, a stop lug on said guard rail adapted to abut against the said traliic rail and also adapted to establish a minimum spacing between the said guard rail and said traiic rail, the said spacing being such as to. leave slightclear ance between said shoulders and saidtraflic' rail, l

1l. In of base plates7 a guard rail erected on said a guard rail structure, a plurality base plates,sa1d base plates being adapted to extend beneath and support a traffic rail,

guard rail,` saidbrackets having shoulders ,adapted to extend toward the under side of the tread of the traffic rail and also toward brackets laterally projecting from said Y and also adapted to establish a minimum 1 spacing between the said guard rail and said traffic' rail, the said spacing being such asy to leave slight clearance between said shoul-y ders and said traffic railand a Wearing strip on said guard rail.

ALONZO H. WESTON. 

